Electroluminescence is a physical phenomenon by which a material, subjected to an electric current or a strong electric field, emits light. For forty years, numerous devices using electroluminescence have been developed.
Typically, electroluminescent devices comprise a stack of successive layers, composed of a layer comprising electroluminescent material and a layer comprising at least one dielectric sandwiched between two conductive layers, also termed electrodes, of which at least one is transparent.
Electroluminescent technology finds its main application in display devices, where its relatively low energy consumption, relative luminosity and capacity to form relatively thin layers makes it a particularly suitable light source.
However, the applications of current electroluminescent devices remain limited, due to the production methods thereof.
Indeed, these electroluminescent devices are usually produced by using squeegee coating and printing methods such as screen printing or, more recently, inkjet printing. These methods are suitable for producing uniform electroluminescent devices, of simple and flat shapes, but do not make it possible for a large-volume production of complex shape devices.